Witching Hour
by Kerosene Stevens
Summary: They're a secluded bunch, crammed together in a house in the forest at the edge of town. They keep to themselves, with both their hearts and their ways. Boys learn shapeshifting. Girls learn magic. Outsiders aren't welcome. (Based on The Witch Boy, by Molly Knox Ostertag)
1. Chapter 1

_I told myself I wasn't gonna Voltron fic, but honestly what did I expect. Now, I've never written Voltron fic before so please be gentle! And I probably won't be posting in large chunks, because I want to have fun with this and not stress because I do that too much, and that's why I haven't updated anything else. I will though!_

 _Anyway this is sort of an experimental, learn as you go type thing, so don't worry if your questions aren't answered right away! And not all the characters are quiiiite as they seem. Thanks to my beautiful beta, Biscuit, for her endless patience and caring. 333 There are still ideas floating between us, so there might be another version of this fic popping up eventually._

 _Now, The Witch Boy (by Molly Ostertag) is an amazing comic and everyone should read it. I found my copy at Barnes & Noble! And I read that there's a sequel in the works, so that's exciting. This fic is an AU of the comic, but it's a little... looser. Not a direct find and replace with all the Voltron characters, but more using the elements and I don't know how to explain this. Look, the comic is amazing and please go support the artist! You won't regret it. _

_Lastly, please let me know what you think! This little blurb was fun (and written in a very short amount of time) but stands as a very personal (if not serious) project of mine. Therefore, a little love goes a long way 333 I appreciate every one of you! Enjoy c:_

 _**8**_

"I'm very disappointed in you, Katie."

Lance cringes, safe to make any expression he likes behind the wall of other students. He watches as Pidge scowls up at their teacher from her sprawl on the ground. "Oh, are you," she sneers, crossing her arms. "Why? Because I'm a girl? Because I messed up your stupid traditions?"

"Tradition is important, Katie," Shiro says gently, though no less stern. He sighs and offers her a hand. Pidge refuses to take it. "Things are the way they are for a reason. You have to learn to respect that."

"Respect what?" Pidge finally slaps Shiro's hand away. "I was doing well! I'm made for shapeshifting, and you know it! Not any of that — frilly girl stuff. Potions or whatever."

"Magic is integral to the safety and well-being of our community, Katie." Another voice breaks in to the burgeoning argument; the crowd parts, and Allura steps forward. Dressed plainly, with herbs spilling out of her pockets and hair bun and a metal rod in hand, she doesn't seem very dangerous, but look her in the eye and it's plain to see that she's a force to be reckoned with. "If you had attended any of your lessons with your fellow witches, you would understand this."

Pidge's expression twists. "I'm not a witch!" she shouts. The crowd of students break out into scandalized whispers at her statement. Lance sucks in a breath, aching. He's never felt so conflicted about anything. "I'm a shapeshifter! I've even seen my—"

"That's enough." Allura's tone brooks no arguments. Her eyes are fiery. "Clean yourself up this instant, Katie. We'll discuss your deceit in private." She casts a judgmental eye over Pidge's dirty clothing and bruised shins. "I expect to meet you in the library in ten minutes."

Pidge is still scowling fiercely, but she shuts up. Shiro sighs heavily, looking away. "I'll see you inside," he says in a subdued tone before following Allura back to the house. The students disperse, still muttering amongst themselves. Soon it's just Lance standing there alone, shuffling his feet while Pidge looks up at the sky and breathes deeply.

After a minute of mutual silence, Lance finally works up the courage to speak. "Hey, Pidge," he says, and she snaps her head up to glare at him. "Can I talk to you?"

"About what, Lance?" she snaps, getting to her feet. "Just because I'm a girl now doesn't mean I suddenly want to talk feelings with you. Or that I'll ever have any for you."

"It's not that," he says hurriedly. "Though, ouch? I would've thought I'd at least have rated friend material by now."

Pidge rolls her eyes, but seems marginally less upset. "We'll see," she replies, dusting the dirt off of her palms. "What do you want, then?"

"It's about the shapeshifting," Lance blurts. Abruptly, Pidge's face darkens. "I know you want to keep going—"

"Obviously. But I can't. Because I'm a girl."

"Well I mean," and here he stops, takes a look around to make sure no one is nearby. He feels strangely nervous about the whole thing, but excited. Anxious. "You still could?"

She stills. "What?"

"I could tell you what they're teaching us," he offers. "I just want to know —"

"Know what?" Pidge presses when he falters. "Know what, Lance?"

"I want to learn witchery."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Text

She's called away shortly thereafter. Lance had received a strange, telling look before she'd turned to sprint towards the house.

He's never told anyone before.

"Witchery?" Pidge's nose had scrunched up. Her — and wasn't that something that would need a few days to think about? The guy he'd been hanging out with for months was actually a girl — expression was something akin to disgusted. Confused, definitely. She didn't — couldn't — understand. "What's so great about witchery? There's a reason I was taking the shapeshifting classes, Lance."

"I know," he responded, flushing with a familiar sense of shame. He kicked at the ground with one foot, rubbing at the back of his neck with one hand and stuffing the other into a pants pocket to hide the shaking. "And you're good at it, Pidge. A natural or something."

It was true. Despite the way of magic, Pidge was proficient in the war-based skills and tactics taught to the men of the family. She'd reported catching sight of glowing eyes in the trees in her dreams. And here he was, a boy, with no gift in shapeshifting whatsoever.

She sniffed. "I'm not terrible. I really did see a spirit following me once, you know." Here she paused, a thought visibly coming to her. "Hang on, is this because of what the other guys say?"

"No," Lance snapped, curling his free hand into a fist and shoving into his other pocket. "But Iverson and them are dicks. And I believe you, you know. You really are good at it. You can keep up."

Here she softened. "Lance, I — thanks. But I'm ahead of the game, you know? A lot of us haven't even seen a hint of any animal spirits, in their dreams or anywhere." She frowned. "And Iverson has a first name, yknow."

"But he's a dick," Lance reiterated. "And he's not wrong. I've never had a single dream about shapeshifting or anything, and I'm not good at the games we're supposed to play. Can't even focus long enough to try. It... it doesn't feel right."

"What do you mean?"

He shrugged. "It doesn't really feel like anything. I don't think I can shift at all. Or that I'll ever be able to."

Pidge cocked her head. "But witches' magic does feel right?"

"Kind of! It's just more interesting, you know? It feels useful."

"Demon hunting is useful," Pidge pointed out reasonably.

Lance looked away. "Obviously. But you don't see any of us doing any hunting at all, even the ones who can shift. Like Keith." He glowered, the usual unpleasant blend of irritation and jealousy rising up in his throat.

She groaned. "Lance."

"Shut up, I know."

There was a distant call on the wind. A familiar one. Both Lance and Pidge looked toward the house at the bottom of the hill, where the trees thinned into a clearing.

"They're calling for me," she observed. "What did they expect me to do: run away?"

"Maybe," Lance replied. "You were pretty upset. And Allura's gonna rip you a new one."

"Well, if you're not just being a dick about this whole thing, and you're really gonna tell me what Shiro's teaching you..." she trailed off, biting her lip. Another call floated up to them on the wind. It sounded like birdsong. "There's no way out of this for me, is there?"

She sounded miserable. Lance felt bad for her, and also bitterly jealous. "Don't think so."

"Yeah." She heaved a deep sigh, staring down at the house below. "I'll tell you what the witches are teaching me. But you better be serious about doing the same for me. That means no more slacking off!"

"I don't slack off," Lance protested, but he was grinning. "Thanks, Pidge."

"I'm serious," she carried on, as though he hadn't said anything, but she looked as though she was smothering a smile in return. She jabbed a finger at him. "You only ever show up for half the lessons!"

"Hey, maybe I have better things to do than wasting my time trying to do something that I can't actually do!"

Here she faltered. "Well," Pidge tried, "now you don't. If you want me to spill Allura's girly witch secrets, you have to have something useful to trade."

"Yeah, alright," he grouched, but it was mostly for show. He thought to himself that he could handle the boys' training if it meant he got to learn something he really wanted to after.

A third call between the trees, louder this time. After this, they would start sending people out to look for her.

"I'll meet you later," Pidge said. "Try to learn something useful in that time. And if I come back wearing girly aprons and bangles, shoot me."

Lance privately thinks bangles are kind of cute.

Boys' classes are over for the day, so he sits on his favorite log in the middle of the forest, where he and Pidge had been laughing together before this whole incident went down, and stares up at the darkening sky. Soon it'll be dark, and he'll be expected to go down to get dinner and roughhouse with the other boys and pretend everything is normal. That he doesn't hate failing at shapeshifting and trying over and over again to achieve something that... doesn't feel like it's going to happen. He'll paste a smile onto his face and joke around and tussle, all the while knowing that the girls will retreat to the library and he'll be stuck going outside to play tag in the dark or something. Something mindless. Animal.

"You're still out here."

Lance startled and looks over his shoulder. Shiro is standing there, arms crossed. The fading light glances on his face; the resulting eyeshine strikes a mix of both alarm and curiosity in Lance, until Shiro blinks and the effect vanishes. The older man smiles.

"H-hey, Shiro," Lance says, turning back towards the sunset. Night is creeping across the sky, swallowing up the pinks and purples and leaving only a deepening blue behind, dotted with stars. Shiro approaches the log quietly.

"Mind if I sit?" Lance shakes his head. Shiro sighs as he takes his seat on the remaining space. "We weren't just calling for Katie, you know."

"Pidge."

"Sorry?"

"It's Pidge." Lance looks over in time to catch the surprise on his teacher's face. "Just because she's actually a girl doesn't mean she doesn't want to be called Pidge, still. I talked to her. She didn't mind not being called Katie."

There's a moment of contemplative silence. Lance looks back to the sky. "You're right," Shiro says finally. "I'll apologize to her tonight and ask what she wants to be called. Thank you, Lance."

"No problem," Lance mutters.

"What are you still doing out here?" Shiro asks finally. Lance shrugs one shoulder.

"Why does Pidge have to leave the boy's classes?"

"Because she's not a boy," is the blank response. "Girls don't have an aptitude for shapeshifting, so they learn witchery."

"But she does have an aptitude for it!" Lance bursts out. He turns to face his teacher full body, straddling the log so he can properly gesticulate with his hands. "She's great at it! Having dreams and everything, and she was followed at the last Finding. She knows how to track, and how to take down people bigger than her, and —"

"Lance," Shiro interrupts, albeit gently. "Pidge is a girl. She will learn witch magic from Allura, and her talent will bloom there. I'm not saying that she's not a good tracker or fighter, because you're right. She is. But what you need to understand is that there's a reason we teach boys and girls different things, and it's not just because it's the way we've always done things."

"Why then?" Lance demands. "Why can't we learn from each other? Why can't we share magic?"

Shiro looks him in the eyes and stares, hard. Lance shuts up out of reflex, nervous. Scared he's overdone it, that he'll be found out and get in trouble, too. Then the man deflates, closes his eyes and rubs the bridge of his nose.

"We were only going to tell K— Pidge," he corrected himself. "But it seems like you need to hear it, too. It's a little scary, so I don't want you spreading it around, okay?"

"Shiro, I'm seventeen," Lance points out. "I've seen scary movies."

Shiro snorts. "Yeah, well. Have you ever heard the name Zarkon?"

"Uh, no," Lance answers with a short laugh. "Sounds like the villain of a cheesy tv show."

"You're right." Shiro laughs with him, but only for a moment. "Maybe that should've been a clue. Twenty years ago, Zarkon was a member of our family, but he did something unforgivable..."


	3. Chapter 3

_Thank you for the love, my dears! As always, feedback is endlessly appreciated._

**8**

Shiro's gaze is distant, looking over the forest below them. When he finally elaborates, his tone is soft and sad. "Zarkon used to be one of us, the strongest of the demon hunters. He was quick, clever, and strong, and had the respect of everyone who lived here. On the outside, he was the perfect member of our family.

"But he was greedy. His perfect control over shapeshifting wasn't enough for him, and he decided to try for witchery as well. But," a flash of humor, "as you know, men don't learn witchery. They're just not made for it. He wanted it, though. Badly enough to cast aside the traditions set in place before anyone can remember.

"Allura and I were very young at the time. Her mother was my guardian, and her father was my mentor. They were close with Zarkon, and thought they knew him well. They were used to seeing only one side of him, so when he started approaching the witches close in age they thought nothing of it. I don't know when they started to really pay attention, but it was too late. It would've been even if they had noticed. And it wasn't their faults; the change in Zarkon was entirely on the inside, so to them nothing was different.

"Zarkon was actually dating, at the time. There was a witch..." Shiro trailed off thoughtfully. "I don't remember her name. But she agreed to teach him what she had learned. It's just that it didn't quite... work.

"He really wasn't built for witch magic, but Zarkon was persistent. The witch studied with him and found a way for him to have both — but it twisted them both irreparably. Zarkon gained the ability to shapeshift into fantastical things: demonic things. And her part in it changed her, inside and out.

"They escaped into the forest together. A few weeks later, they attacked the house. People died. Coran and some of the others banished them eventually. After that… we don't really know. The witch came back after a few months and told us what she'd gone through, but there were some things she left out both about herself and about Zarkon. She wasn't the same -"

Here he stops and heaves a deep sigh. "Well. She didn't stick around. And neither did Zarkon."

Lance stares up at the sky, taking it all in. "Why did he attack you?" he asks finally. Hearing the whole thing was like listening to the It seems hard to imagine on a personal level. Like watching Shiro suddenly turn on them all after learning witchery, and dragging Allura off into the forest with her.

"I don't know," Shiro responds. He gets to his feet and stretches. "I try not to think about it often. What's past is past. No one's seen Zarkon since." He slants a look in Lance's direction. "I was serious about not telling everyone. This isn't a story we share lightly."

Lance starts and jerks away, mentally shoving away his dark thoughts and contemplations to deal with later. "Oh yeah, no - totally! I get it."

"Do you?"

"No…" He deflates. " I mean, why are you telling _me_ this? I don't - get it." Unless he's caught on. But Lance was so _careful_. Aside from Pidge, no one knows.

Shiro shuffles his feet. He seems to be considering what to say next. "... I noticed you've been getting really close with Pidge lately and-"

"What!" Lance yelps, startled into going on the defensive. He jumps up from the log and takes a step back. "No. No! Pidge and I are just friends-"

"Lance-" Shiro cringes, raising one hand in supplication and facepalming with the other. "I wasn't talking about that. At _all._ "

Lance flushes, unreasonably embarrassed considering _neither of them were talking about that at all_ and fumbles for an answer as he backs away slowly. "Right, totally. I'm just gonna - go over there now. Good talk and all that, see you at the house!" he tosses over his shoulder. He hears his teacher's heavy sigh behind him.


End file.
